Indiana Conservatives Willing to Lose All Its Federal Medicaid Funding, Nobel Prize Winning Economist Unqualified, ECB Pushes for Sale of Greece . .

 And Other News That Needs Commenting On

The State of Indiana has voted to deny funding to Planned Parenthood, a health organization that spends almost all of its money on health care for people who cannot afford it, and a small portion of its money on providing abortion services.  This violates Federal Law, and the consequences are that the Federal Government could withhold $4.3 billion in Medicaid funding for the state, reports the Boston Globe.

This puts Conservatives in a position of being willing to deny health care to tens of thousands of low income residents in order to promote an agenda, however admirable in their eyes, to deny legally allowable services to the citizens of their state.  Their concern for the unborn is admirable, their concern for everyone else, non-existent.  And since the actual money for Medicaid goes to health care providers, taking $4.3 billion out of the Indiana Health Care system is devastating to that system.  Another aspect of their agenda they do not seem to care about.

Sarah Palin may not be ready for prime time, but she is ready for Saturday morning cartoons as this clip from the Washington Post shows.

[Late Addition:  “Palin should not be on vacation. She should be in summer school.” – Bill Maher (talking about Sarah Palin’s botched explanation of Paul Revere’s midnight ride)]  Thanks to http://politicalirony.com/

Peter Diamond, a Nobel Prize winning Economist was nominated to the Federal Reserve Board by President Obama.  In the NYT today he announces that he is withdrawing his nomination. The nomination is being blocked by Senator Richard Shelby (R, Al) who does not believe that Mr. Diamond is qualified.   Sen. Shelby sits in the U. S. Senate, so one could argue that qualifications, of which Mr. Diamond has plenty, are not required for government positions.  Well, certainly not to be Senator from Alabama.

The European Central Bank says that Greece is solvent because the Government has assets to pay its debts.

 FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Financially troubled Greece can pay its debts if it is willing to sell off billions in state property and carry through on plans for budget cuts, a top European Central Bank official said Monday.

Lorenzo Bini Smaghi said Greece, with a debt of euro330 billion ($485 billion) and "marketable assets" of euro300 billion ($435 billion), is "solvent to the extent that it is willing to sell off some of those assets."

Now The Dismal Political Economist wrote earlier about how an LBO of Greece could solve its fiscal financial problems, but he did not expect European officials to take up that suggestion this quickly.  Of course, selling off those assets just puts Greece further in the hole, as The Dismal Political Economist pointed out earlier. 

Salon reports that Gov. Rick Perry of Texas is urging everyone to come together and pray to Jesus to solve America’s fiscal problems, terrorists attacks and natural disasters.

"Right now, America is in crisis: we have been besieged by financial debt, terrorism, and a multitude of natural disasters. As a nation, we must come together and call upon Jesus to guide us through unprecedented struggles, and thank Him for the blessings of freedom we so richly enjoy."

Apparently for Mr. Perry, the “blessings of freedom” do not include Freedom of Religion.  When asked about this, Thomas Jefferson said that he was not amused nor surprised.